CLYDE VAMVORAS
Bareback Riding . Inducted into the PRCA Hall of Fame in 2002
Born Jan. 4, 1942, in Lake Charles, La., Clyde Vamvoras wanted to be a cowboy from an early age. Legend has it he skipped out on a job scaring blackbirds with a shotgun to ride bulls in a nearby field and he used hard earned paper route money paying a nearby rancher to ride bareback broncs. The career was cinched with an all-around cowboy title in the Louisiana High School Rodeo competition when he was 18. Vamvoras qualified for the National Finals Rodeo 11 straight years (1963-73). The streak would have been longer, but injuries in 1962 and 1974 kept him out of the Top 15. During his career Vamvoras won Cheyenne (Wyo.), Houston, Fort Worth (Texas) and most of the other major rodeos in his era. Known as a tough guy and a free spirit, Vamvoras stories are legendary. One has him breaking his shoulder and having pins surgically implanted. Later, he removed the pins himself so he could ride during an exhibition tour in Japan. Another has Vamvoras attaching fishing weights to his feet so he could sleep each night with his feet out in perfect bareback riding form. True or not, the legend and stories of Clyde Vamvoras have been a rich part of rodeo history over the years. Vamvoras died Nov. 1, 1985.
World Championships: 2 (1967-68)
Bareback Riding . Inducted into the PRCA Hall of Fame in 2002
Born Jan. 4, 1942, in Lake Charles, La., Clyde Vamvoras wanted to be a cowboy from an early age. Legend has it he skipped out on a job scaring blackbirds with a shotgun to ride bulls in a nearby field and he used hard earned paper route money paying a nearby rancher to ride bareback broncs. The career was cinched with an all-around cowboy title in the Louisiana High School Rodeo competition when he was 18. Vamvoras qualified for the National Finals Rodeo 11 straight years (1963-73). The streak would have been longer, but injuries in 1962 and 1974 kept him out of the Top 15. During his career Vamvoras won Cheyenne (Wyo.), Houston, Fort Worth (Texas) and most of the other major rodeos in his era. Known as a tough guy and a free spirit, Vamvoras stories are legendary. One has him breaking his shoulder and having pins surgically implanted. Later, he removed the pins himself so he could ride during an exhibition tour in Japan. Another has Vamvoras attaching fishing weights to his feet so he could sleep each night with his feet out in perfect bareback riding form. True or not, the legend and stories of Clyde Vamvoras have been a rich part of rodeo history over the years. Vamvoras died Nov. 1, 1985.
World Championships: 2 (1967-68)
CLYDE VAMVORAS
Bareback Riding . Inducted into the PRCA Hall of Fame in 2002
Born Jan. 4, 1942, in Lake Charles, La., Clyde Vamvoras wanted to be a cowboy from an early age. Legend has it he skipped out on a job scaring blackbirds with a shotgun to ride bulls in a nearby field and he used hard earned paper route money paying a nearby rancher to ride bareback broncs. The career was cinched with an all-around cowboy title in the Louisiana High School Rodeo competition when he was 18. Vamvoras qualified for the National Finals Rodeo 11 straight years (1963-73). The streak would have been longer, but injuries in 1962 and 1974 kept him out of the Top 15. During his career Vamvoras won Cheyenne (Wyo.), Houston, Fort Worth (Texas) and most of the other major rodeos in his era. Known as a tough guy and a free spirit, Vamvoras stories are legendary. One has him breaking his shoulder and having pins surgically implanted. Later, he removed the pins himself so he could ride during an exhibition tour in Japan. Another has Vamvoras attaching fishing weights to his feet so he could sleep each night with his feet out in perfect bareback riding form. True or not, the legend and stories of Clyde Vamvoras have been a rich part of rodeo history over the years. Vamvoras died Nov. 1, 1985.
World Championships: 2 (1967-68)
Bareback Riding . Inducted into the PRCA Hall of Fame in 2002
Born Jan. 4, 1942, in Lake Charles, La., Clyde Vamvoras wanted to be a cowboy from an early age. Legend has it he skipped out on a job scaring blackbirds with a shotgun to ride bulls in a nearby field and he used hard earned paper route money paying a nearby rancher to ride bareback broncs. The career was cinched with an all-around cowboy title in the Louisiana High School Rodeo competition when he was 18. Vamvoras qualified for the National Finals Rodeo 11 straight years (1963-73). The streak would have been longer, but injuries in 1962 and 1974 kept him out of the Top 15. During his career Vamvoras won Cheyenne (Wyo.), Houston, Fort Worth (Texas) and most of the other major rodeos in his era. Known as a tough guy and a free spirit, Vamvoras stories are legendary. One has him breaking his shoulder and having pins surgically implanted. Later, he removed the pins himself so he could ride during an exhibition tour in Japan. Another has Vamvoras attaching fishing weights to his feet so he could sleep each night with his feet out in perfect bareback riding form. True or not, the legend and stories of Clyde Vamvoras have been a rich part of rodeo history over the years. Vamvoras died Nov. 1, 1985.
World Championships: 2 (1967-68)
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